Rear end seal for railroad journal boxes



A vmr Oct. 28, 1958 K. A. KLINGLER 2,858,148

REAR END SEAL FOR RAILROAD JOURNAL. BOXES Filed Feb. 1l, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct. 28, 1958 K, A. KLINGLER v2,858,143

` REAR END sRAL RoR RAILROAD JOURNAL BoxEs Filed Feb. 11, 1955 l s sheets-sheet 2;

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REAR END SEAL FOR RAILROAD JOURNAL BOXES Filed Feb. 11, 1955 s sheets-sheet s:

Eig-4 4 6 In ven for 77 9 8 Mr? ./Z Zz'fzy/er @y par/?? Caffe?" REAR END SEAL FOR RAILROAD JOURNAL BOXES Karl A. Klingler, Naperville, Ill.

Application February 11, 1955, Serial No. 487,656

1 Claim. (Cl. 286-6) *y My invention relates to improvements in rear end seal for railroad journal boxes and has for one object to provide a seal for the opening in the rear end of a railroad car axle journal box which must be left open for penetration of the axle into the box.

My seal is intended for use in connection with a friction type of railroad car journals where liquid lubricant is stored as liquid without waste or other packing means in the journal box and is by suitable mechanism conveyed upwardly from the bottom of the box for distribution on the surface of the journal below the brass. This presents a somewhat different problem to that heretofore presented when waste soaked with oil or used in the box to lubricate the journal because as the car travels along the track vertical horizontal longitudinal and transverse vibration causes the oil to swash about in the tank defined by the journal box and so means must be provided to keep this freely flowing liquid oil from splashing out the box.

My invention includes rst a special type of flexible sealing diaphragm which may be positioned at the end of the box which will have a central aperture enclosing the axle, will maintain contact with the axle independent or relative vertical -or horizontal displacement of the axle and the box, and will furnish an adequate oil seal and will be protected against damage asjresult of excessive axial movement in the box.

I also provide in connection with such seal protecting means to protect it against the impact of splashed or thrown oil which might otherwise be forced through the sealing area and escape from the box.

My invention is illustrated more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawing, wherein- Figure l is a longitudinal section along the line 1*-1 of Figure 2 of railroad journal box showing the axle and journal in side elevation;

Figure 2 is a section along the line 2 2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a detail section along the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is Aa section along the line 4-4 of Figure l;

Figure 5 is a section along the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the specification and drawings.

1 is a journal box open at 2 and adapted to be closed by the conventional type of journal box cover pivoted on the pin 3 but not shown as it forms 4no part of the present invention. The journal box has at its inboard end an outer wall 4 and an inner wall 5 defining a sealing pocket 6 open at the top. The walls 4 and 5 are apertured respectively as at 6, 7 to permit the journal 8 on the end of the car axle 9 to penetrate the box through the openings 6 and 7. The journal has an integral collar 10 at its outboard end and there is a cylindrical area 11 between the main body of the axle 9 and the journal 8. 12 is the journal brass which rests upon the journal, being held in position in the box by the wedge 13. This arrangement is conventional and standard and needs no further illustration or discussion.

l United States Patent O 14 is` a sealing diaphragm of flexible rubber-like or `elastomeric material encircling the cylindrical finished `centrally apertured to encircle and engage the finished part 11 of the axle. The aperture is bounded by two oppositely outwardly extending lips 17, 18so `that the central j portion of the seal is not in contact with the finished portion of the axle. This sealing diaphragm is offset as indicated at 20 so that the lips 17, 18 for the upper halfr of the sealing diaphragm `are nearer to the wall 5 than are the lower half of the sealing diaphragm. Thus the diaphragm is at the median point offset. This offsetting is more especially shown at 20 in Figure 5. The purpose of this is to localize the point at which stretching or bend- .ing Iof the body of the sealing diaphragm to compensate for `differences in size of the finished portion of the axle may take place.

It is a fact that While journal boxes and usually the journals themselves and their associated parts are standard size, nevertheless the finished portion of the axle may vary and by this offset arrangement it becomes possible to use a standard single size of apertured corrugated flexible sealing ring or diaphragm to seal the journal box with different sizes of axles. The aperture must be such that the lips 17, 18 will engage and snugly iit the smallest diameter axle `and by providing the offset at 20 which so to speak weakens the constricting effect of the diaphragm around the axle and localizes the point at which movement takes place so as to prevent the application of excessive pressure by the diaphragm on the axle.

The ange 15 is reinforced by a metal ring 21 flanged to engage the outer edge of the rubber-like :flange 15 and this flange is so related to the size of the apertures 6 and 7 that even at maximum displacement of the axle in the-l box, the flange will not be contacted.

There is the danger that under some circumstances'. excess relative vertical movement of .axle and box may occur and it is for that reason that the lower portionv of the sealing diaphragm is yoffset to the left of Figure 1f to make sure there is no danger of its being pinched between the axle and the wall of the journal box. That danger does not appear with respect tothe upper half of the sealing diaphragm.

I have not illustrated the oiling means. Whatever they may be, they will be in the box adjacent the` center thereof and associated with the journal 8 and will be arranged to raise oil from the bottom of the box and discharge -it upon the journal. Any free oil splashing about in the box will under ordinary circumstances be thrown oif by centrifugal force from the finished portion 11 of the axle and returned by gravity to the bath but sidewise movement might splash oil under substantial pressure against the lower portion of the sealing diaphragm and therefore that diaphragm must be protected against the direct impact of such oil.

This is .accomplished by means of lan oil well 25 preferably of rubber or rubber-like material. It engages the inner face of the wall 5, being held thereagainst by the semi-circular holding ring 26. That ring 26 is perforated as is the wall of the oil well, the wall 5, the flange 15 and the metal ring 21 so that a bolt 27 may hold these parts together thereby holding at the same: time the oil well and the sealing diaphragm in place, the wall 4 being apertured as at 27a to permit the insertion of the bolt 27. The lower portion of the oil well 25 terminates in an annular discharge passage 28 bounded at the bottom by lips 29, 30 which either are slightly spaced apart or just in contact so that any oil dropping down from the axle or thrown off centrifugally by the member 11 will be caught in the oil well and may leak out back to the Patented Oct. 28, 1958" bath at vthe bottom of the housing. However, the oil well extends as it does upwardly about the axle, being just clear of it about half way up, furnishes an effective barrier to protect the lower half of the sealing diaphragm from direct impact of oil discharged vunder pressure by sidewise compression or movement.

I claim: p

A seal for railroad car axle `journal boxes comprising a.` exible extensible centrally apertured elastomeric diaphragm, .a at, rigid, anchor ring encircling the diaphragm, two semi-circular sealing flanges bounding the aperture, each flange extending substantially half-way around the aperture, each flange being located in a plane parallel with the plane of the anchor ring, the two planes in which the sealing rings are located being perpendicular to the axis of the anchor ring and axially spaced, an oset member integral with the adjacent end of each of the two References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 889,422 Wood June 2, 1908 1,818,864 Peyinghaus Aug. 11, 1931 2,143,249 Pool Jan. 10, 1939 2,638,363 Bryant May 12, 1953 2,657,080 Johnson et al Oct. 27, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 118,442 Sweden Mar. 26, 1947 

